When Character Counts!

I want to share with you an amazing example of one child’s courage and character at the end of the Orange Olympics, an annual athletic event which took place at High Plains on June 12, 2013.  But, first a little background. 

 

In education, as with many other fields, we tend to rely on catch phrases which are intended to resonate with the audience and make a complex concept more meaningful and memorable.  Sometimes, however, our jargon does the opposite because the phrase is wide open to a variety of interpretations.   ‘Whole child education’ is one of those terms.  What does it mean?  On the surface, it even seems a little silly – after all, who would teach half of a child?

Whole child education, however, refers to the idea that all children learn best when their academic, emotional, physical, and social understandings are addressed.  Yes, we write report cards and update you on the CMTs and other standardized tests as evidence of our students’ academic achievements.   In fact, for a while now, it has seemed as if educational thinking, practice, and policy have been singularly focused on academic achievement.   In Orange, that is not the case.  We all know that to be successful participating world citizens, our students must also be healthy, confident, self-motivated, considerate, and honest.  In other words, they need to be young people of character.   These attributes are, of course, treasured by our families; and we realize what we do in our schools supplements these same values you are teaching at home.  But, be assured, all of our schools do focus on these qualities through programs, such as ‘Character Counts,’ through planned philanthropic activities, and by capitalizing on ‘teachable moments’ when they occur.  Yesterday’s event at the Olympics illustrated the importance of ‘whole child’ character education perfectly; and hopefully, all of our students paid attention and learned something of value.

At the closing ceremonies of the Olympics, a young man was called up to podium to receive his gold medal for winning his event.  He took the stage, and in front of his peers and a crowd of parents found the courage to express, ‘I didn’t win this; it doesn’t belong to me; the person who actually won this event has the same first name as I do, but he’s the person who won.’   Imagine the nervousness he felt in front of a crowd; imagine the choices running through his head.   He could accept the medal and keep it.  He could accept the medal, for now, and then after the ceremony, give it back and explain it wasn’t his.  But, he took the least easy path available to him and chose ‘doing the right thing’ at the moment when doing the right thing was called for.  In front of everyone, he ensured that the medal and recognition went to the person to whom it belonged.

That’s character!

Schools and the Social Networking Terrain

I don't think social media is getting any easier to navigate.  There's a lot of information circling amongst my peers purporting the merits of 'going social' by creating a district Facebook page or by joining the ranks of the 'twittering Superintendents' ... or by doing both, since each has its separate merits. 

 

Racing through my head lately is that piece of professional advice, coupled with a nagging fear that Orange isn't doing enough to make our kids as cybersmart as they should be before hitting middle school, ... and tripled by this information I just read this week:  Author Emily Bazelon wrote an article in The Atlantic detailing how an anonymous student created a Facebook page called "let's Start Drama" at a Middletown, Connecticut, middle school and used the page to bully her fellow students.  She called herself simply 'Drama Queen.'   Bazelon writes, “She hovered over them in cyberspace like a bad fairy, with the power to needle kids into ending friendships and starting feuds and fistfights… Wrapped in her cloak of anonymity, she was free to pass along cruel gossip without personal consequences.  She started by posting a few idle rumors, and when that gained her followers, she asked them to send her private messages relaying more gossip, promising not to disclose the source. Which girl had just lost her virginity? What boy had asked a girl to sext him a nude photo?” Before long, Drama Queen had an audience of 500, many of whom had follow-up comments on the rumors. She pitted students against each other by posting side-by-side photos of girls and asking who was hotter and photos of boys asking, “Who would win a fight?”  It turns out that after investigating, the middle school turned up 12 other pages of the same ilk.

 

Any parent and educator would find this scenario scary.  She had 500 like-minded participants -- or, at least voyeurs into this dehumanizing world she had created?  

 

In my mind, we should be teaching our children to be exactly the same person on-line as they are in person... they should be the same person they are when they walk the corridors of the school... and the streets of any new city they visit.  If they wouldn't go up to other classmates, in person, and call them names or say cruel things, then they shouldn't do it online either.  If they wouldn't walk up to a stranger in the mall and hand that stranger a picture of themselves in their underwear, then they shouldn't 'sext' that picture, or post it online, either.  There's something about the 'artificiality' of social media that has stripped us of the basic sensibilities we know to be true in our daily interactions with 'real' people.  It's as if in the social media arena we aren't 'responsible' for what we say in the same way we are responsible for ourselves in public. 

 

In the Bazelton article, she talks about two 'organizations' who are tackling the cruelty of cyberbullying; one is BullySpace and the other is Anonymous (yes! that same controversial vigilante group).  Both are using artificial intelligence and algorithms to detect bullying language and posts and then targeting those message posters with pop-ups which read anything from, "That was nasty! Wait 60-seconds before you post!" to expletive-driven, 'What gives you the right!' messages.  Facebook, who reports that kids would rather be expelled from school than expelled from Facebook, has started shutting down offensive pages.  But, in truth, they are coming late to the party!

 

If you haven't already, it's not too late to talk to your pre-teen about social media and what your expectations are for his or behavior in that arena as well as in public.  We can't assume that they are naturally transferring those values, and the consequences for mistakes can be devastating.  Often, when cyberbullies are caught, or when a community finds out about a bullying page and lashes out at the kids who started it, the kids are shocked.  They say they 'were only trying to have some fun!'  They claim they 'didn't know anyone would be hurt by it!'  They rationalize 'it's not like it was real or anything!'

 

It's not easy to navigate, and it's real!

         

The 'Smart' vs. 'Capable' Perspective

Almost every day, for one reason or another, I reach back to my childhood and find myself grateful for my parents' innate ability to foster what I now think of as 'perspective,' or the healthy ability to be both confident in my success and humbled by the lack of it.

Sometimes, my recollection is something funny.  I might trip on a crack in the sidewalk in front of MLT and hear my father's voice in my ear, "There goes 'Grace' again."  He never said, "Don't be so clumsy," which would have been denigrating; but he didn't blame the sidewalk, either.  He laughed a lot when we were kids, but never at us... unless, we were being ridiculous! 

Sometimes, the recollection is much more practical; and thus, when I'm fielding a complaint or a working through a difficult report I end up with his sayings running through my head: messages like "Don't judge, until you've walked a mile in that person's shoes," or "If you quit, who's going to finish for you?"

When I was child, my father might ask me to hold a flashlight for him under the kitchen sink, but I knew what that request really meant... it meant lots of questions about what I saw him doing: "What if I turn this...?"  "What do you think is holding this in place?" "Why might we try to ...?"

All of this was about 'growth' and 'becoming more capable,' which intrigued me as I read "Fostering a 'Growth' Mindset in Students," in Principal Leadership, by Douglas Fisher and Nancy Frey.  In this article, the authors discuss the importance of helping students to develop what they call 'personal narratives' or belief statements about who they are.  The authors state that, "one crucial aspect is helping students move from a fixed mindset to a growth mindset."  They go on to describe students with a fixed mindset as those kids who believe their personal 'smartness' was fixed at birth and, therefore, they must keep proving they are smart to others.   On the other hand, students who have a growth mindset believe their basic qualities can be continuously cultivated through effort and persistence.

I think it's obvious which lifestyle approach will serve our kids, their parents, and our society at large the best.  Especially as we move into the 21st Century economy, we need young people who believe "I can learn anything if I put in the effort."  It can't be about getting the answer the quickest, ("I'm smart!"); because, when when the answer doesn't come easily, but takes time, concentration, and effort, which it will in our contemporary world, our kids will need persistence. 

"Praise for being 'smart' leads kids to believe that learning should be easy – and if it feels difficult, then they’re not smart.  On the other hand, praise for focusing and sticking with a task fosters a much more positive mindset – you can 'get smart' through effective effort.

I remember reading a study done at Brown University, and I think it was Varton Gregorian who quoted it.  In the study, elementary school students were given a multiple-choice math problem that went something like this: "The Army wants to move 729 soldiers.  If each bus holds 65 soldiers, how many buses will the Army need?"  The 'smarter' the kids, the more likely they were to choose '11.22' as their answer.  In other words, 11.22, which carried the answer out to the hundredth decimal place, seemed more correct to them than 12.  Yet, there is no such thing as .22 of a bus. 

So, how do we foster 'capable growth' rather than reverence for 'being smart.' Fisher and Frey tell us that when parents and teachers compliment children in a way in which children see their own roles in the accomplishment, they will begin to see that their effort allowed them to meet their goals."  Just as my father did, under the kitchen sink, with a wrench in his hand: "Huh, you figured that out, did you?  Feels good doesn't it?"

 

Growing up, my successes were my own, not my parents.  In their eyes, I wasn't born either smart or lucky.  My actions led to the results, whether good or bad.   They were very interested in my effort, always wanting to know how I accomplished something, what I might do differently next time, and how my success felt.

 

There's No Surprise There!

If you're like me, you sometimes read study results and wonder to yourself how much money and time the university or institute invested in researching what seems like a foregone conclusion.  Do we really need scientific studies to confirm that swallowing magnets is bad for us, that bees are attracted to apples, that cramming doesn't work, or that exercising more and eating less can lead to weight loss?  As my grandson tells me, often enough, "Duh!"

 

That's the case in a study I read today which seems like it arrived at one of those 'duh' conclusions... but yet one so obviously ignored by many school communities.  Here are the findings I'm referring to: 'Teachers' school culture, working conditions, and job satisfaction have an impact on student learning.'   The study was done by Susan Johnson and Matthew Kraft of Harvard Graduate School of Education and John Papay of Brown University; and, in all honesty, their study goes deeper that I have heretofor given them credit.

I wouldn't have been able to tell you, for example, that teachers' school culture and working conditions are more important factors in student achievement in reading and math than the students’ socioeconomic backgrounds, which, as the authors of the study state, 'suggests that much of the apparent effect of student demographics really translates into differences in their schools’ teachers' work environments.'   Change the school environment; change the result.

 

This is a perfect segue into mentioning to you our 'Safe Schools Planning Committees' and an upcoming opportunity for you to participate in an online survey and provide information about your child(ren)'s school climate.   Our 2nd, 4th, and 6th grade students and our teachers will have the same opportunity to take the survey that we'll offer to parents.  The surveys will be one step in each school's study of its school climate.  The following steps will be: recognizing strengths and weaknesses in the school's climate, writing goals with timelines and accountability measures, and post-assessing to see if  progress has been made. 

 

The Administrative Team, i.e. the principals, Colleen Murray, Kai Graves and I, realize that positive school climate, of course, impacts student achievement.   And we also recognize why.   In schools with positive culture:

• Teachers collaborate and work together to ensure the curriculum and instructional strategies are first-rate; every teacher working together is always more productive than any one teacher working alone.
• Teachers and their principal collaborate about problems and issues, showing mutual trust and support, leading to a more meaningful commitment to students.
• An orderly, respectful, safe environment takes emphasis off of negative behaviors and restores attention to academics.
• Teachers have the time they need for instruction, both in the core acadmic areas and the social/affective domains, which allows them to take advantage of 'teachable moments'.
• Students feel safe to take risks, ask questions, make mistakes, be themselves, which leads to deeper, less rote, learning.
• Families become involved.

Thus, we hope that when the on-line survey becomes available to you, you will take advantage of that opportunity to tell us what you think. The links to the survey will be available right on the district's and schools' webpages. If you would like to learn more anout the Safe Schools Plan, you can check out the template the schools will be completing this year on the webpage, in the "Policy" section.

History Speaks: Rules for Teachers from the Past

Over this past summer, during the revision the new webpage, I stumbled upon the 'Rules for Teachers' that I am going to share with you below.  I loved reading them!  They were compelling, but I didn't know quite what to do with them. 

Until I attended a transportation meeting at Amity High School with all of our Orange bus drivers.  Before the meeting began, Mr. Chris Winkle and I started a conversation that wandered into his telling me his mother had been a teacher at Mary L. Tracy until 1923 when she had married his father and been forced to quit teaching.  I instantly recalled 'the rules' I had found.  Both sets of rules below, 1872's and 1915's, dismissed women who married from the profession. 

Being a teacher myself, my heart broke a little to hear Mr. Winkle say his mother was forced to give up this most rewarding profession when she chose to be a wife and mother.  But, on second thought, I reasoned, at least she could take her time when getting an ice cream downtown!

The Academy, built 1812, is the present day site

of the Orange Historical Society

1915 Rules for Teachers

1. You will not marry during the term of your contract.
2. You are not to keep company with men.
3. You must be home between the hours of 8 p.m. and 6 a.m. unless attending a school function.
4. You may not loiter downtown in ice cream stores.
5. You may not travel beyond the city limits unless you have the permission of the Chairman of the Board.
6. You may not ride in a carriage or automobile with any man unless he is your father or brother.
7. You may not smoke cigarettes.
8. You may not dress in bright colors.
9. You may under no circumstances dye your hair.
10. You must wear at least two petticoats.
11. Your dresses must not be any shorter than two inches below the knee.
12. To keep the school room neat and clean, you must: sweep the floor at least once daily, scrub the floor at least once a week with hot soapy water, clean the blackboards at least once a day and start the fire at 7 a.m. so the room will be warm by 8 a.m.

Rules for Teachers 1872

1. Teachers each day will fill lamps, clean chimneys.
2. Each teacher will bring a bucket of water and a scuttle of coal for the day’s session.
3. Make your pens carefully. You may whittle nibs to the individual taste of the pupils.
4. Men teachers may take one evening each week for courting purposes, or two evenings per week if they go to church regularly.
5. After ten hours in school, the teachers may spend the remaining time reading the Bible or other good books.
6. Women teachers who marry will be dismissed.
7. Every teacher should lay aside from each pay a goodly sum of his earnings for his benefit during his declining years so that he will not become a burden on society.
8. Any teacher who smokes, uses liquor in any form, frequents pool or public halls, or gets shaved in a barber shop will give good reason to suspect his worth, intention, integrity, and honesty.
9. The teacher who performs his labor faithfully and without fault for five years will be given an increase of twenty-five cents per week in his pay, providing the Board of Education approves.

Opening Day, August 2012

I have thought about and awaited my first ‘opening day’ in Orange for eight long months. I knew that when the day finally came I would talk about change, because ‘change’ is in the very air we breathe right now. But, what to say?

I grew up with my father’s voice in my ear, and his wisdom has always served me well. Whether it was a high school algebra test or field hockey game, or later in life, a tricky relationship or a financial crisis, “You want it to turn out better?” he’d say, “Change something. Nothing gets better by accident.”

On the other hand, I also recall having a conversation with a former colleague, who has since passed away.   I was trying to convince him to introduce some contemporary chapter books into the curriculum.   At the conclusion of the conversation, he simply said, “Not everyone likes change, you know. Some people go on vacation every year to the same cottage on the same lake and always order the lime rickey at the same ice cream stand.” 

It brought me up short and caused me to appreciate the paradox of change. In the end, however, it’s always my father’s voice in my head; and while I truly appreciated what this teacher said, I often wondered if routine comes at too great a price. Sometimes, change comes very hard to us because we over-estimate the value of what we have, and we under-estimate the greatness of what we might have … should we be agreeable to change.
 
It’s that ‘potential greatness’ that I want to emphasize as we begin the new school year!

So, what are the changes a foot in Orange? First of all, not one single change has been made ‘simply for the sake of change.’  Everything we’re doing has a well-thought out ‘rationale.’ With the exception of the implementation of our new math curriculum, Math Expressions, none of the changes is huge or demanding.  And, even considering the implementation of our new math curriculum, none of them is beyond our capacity!

As we face these changes together, I’m hoping we will always consider whether or not the change requires planning and effort … or simply requires open mindedness.  I’m hoping we will not throw all the changes into the same basket.  

As you’ve already noticed, we have many new people in our buildings.   We chose these people and invited them to join us.   Each deserves our warmest welcome to the school community.   Please extend a hand in community spirit whenever you can.   Be generous with your friendship and collegiality.   This kind of change does not really take effort on our part; it takes simple open-mindedness.

We have made a change in our website and switched from CMS, which was rather ‘static,’ to a new district webpage provider, Finalsite, which is dynamic.  In the process, we have gained a great number of features.   Our visitors can sign up for rss feeds and alerts. The new site has ‘virtual backpacks’ for school and community notices.   The directory is cleaner.   The calendar will be reliable.   The ‘Directions’ tab takes you to Google maps.   This change to Finalsite will require an adjustment on everyone’s part, but this is NOT a new initiative. The heavy lifting has already been done; and this change requires open-mindedness.

My hope is that our teachers will have their webpages up and running as soon as possible. The dream for the webpage is that it becomes the first place our community goes for the information.   The calendar will be updated daily!   You will be able to depend on it!   If we do our part, and the webpage does its job, we’ll save paper and photocopying (making us greener!) and a great deal of time.
 
Other changes we’ve made include the purchase and implementation of new ‘suite of SRBI’ intervention tools to support our struggling learners.  Most of these tools are Internet-based and students will be able to access them in 21st Century after-school programming (if they are participants) or at home.  

This coming year, we’ll need to rewrite our Teacher Evaluation Plan to meet the new State legislation. We also need to complete our State-mandated Safe Schools Plans.   We need deeply committed and interested members of our community for the District’s Long-Range Planning Committee.   These changes will take time, effort, and thought.  If you are interested in these kinds of community leadership opportunities, they are open to you.   Please call your school and apply.

Finally, I want to mention the district’s only three goals for the year.   The first, as I mentioned, is the implementation of Math Expressions!  It will take time and our steadfast energy, enthusiasm, and effort.  Our Specials teachers have been given equally weighty and significant curriculum initiatives to work on.   Some are developing common assessments because that practice makes great sense, but also in anticipation of the new State teacher evaluation model.  Others are working on the Student Success Plans for 6th graders.  Some are working on Accelerated Reader.
 
Before, I introduce the second and third goals, I want to mention that our Administrative-level discussions about CMT testing results have been healthy and worthwhile.   Our kids do great!   They show growth over time, and they are well above the state averages.   Often, about 50% of them are in the Advanced band – not 'Goal', but 'Advanced!'   However, when we compare ourselves to other schools in our DRG, we do not often enough fall into the top half of the DRG.  

We do NOT need to do an in-depth study of this.   We do NOT need to make significant changes in curriculum or instructional strategies.   Our curriculum and our instruction are already excellent.   We DO, however, need to do two things better… and these two things are the next two goals on the list.

Our second goal is the protection of instructional time. Philosophically, the Orange School District needs to believe that the teacher’s time in the classroom, with the students, is sacrosanct!   And, then, we need to act according to that belief.   If there was one resounding message I heard over and over again from teachers last year, it was this: “I don’t have enough time!”

Thus, teachers will no longer be routinely pulled from their classrooms for curriculum writing or for meetings.   Our students are not better off in the hands of a substitute, and what an incorrect message we send when we act as if the common practice of replacing teachers with subs is 'the same'!  Except in the case of emergencies, we will try to protect the teachers from phone calls and unexpected visitors. (The principals, by the way, aren’t considered visitors!)

The principals were given the charge to protect instructional time through careful scheduling over the summer and, now that school has started, through ‘buffering.’   It will be their jobs to protect classroom instruction from external interruptions.   Within the classroom, the protection of instructional time will be the responsibility of the teachers, by focusing on what’s important. Our shared goal will be that we will rarely sacrifice core curriculum time, and when we do, we will do it intentionally and with planning.

And, thus, the final ‘change’ I am going to mention is significant, but will take only a few minutes a day. It’s another one of those changes that is more about ‘open-mindedness’ than effort.  I’m asking that before each lesson, the teachers write the ‘target,’ or lesson objective, on the board or post it where students can see it.   This is as simple as writing out a list of Saturday chores for your family and posting it on the refrigerator.  This target, or ‘objective, is simply a focus for the lesson, written in ‘kid-friendly language.’   It gives the learning purpose and structure in the students’ minds.

I have been in classrooms and observed first graders whose attention has wandered off.  I have seen them, a moment or two later, refocus themselves by looking at the right spot on the chart paper and seeing in very simple words or even pictures, what it is they should be doing, and then getting back to work.  Just as the ‘list’ gives Saturday morning structure, so does the ‘target’ give classroom learning structure.  

Equally important, this ‘target’ or ‘focus’ will help us protect our precious instructional time because when something isn’t on the list, or we can’t find a worthwhile curriculum target or objective to go along with it, we tend to do less of it.  I am not suggesting that our teachers will give up precious ‘teachable moments’ when they occur; I asking simply that they provide their students with an ‘agenda item’ to guide their learning.

Thus, with all of the ‘change’ bursting out around us, I’m asking that all of us distinguish the deep systemic changes from simple changes which require only a little thought and an open mind.  Our school-based goals for the year are: 1. Implementing the Math Expressions, and the curriculum equivalent for our specialists; 2. Protecting instructional time; and 3. Posting our objective or target in kid-speak.
 
This is an excellent school community with quality teachers, the purest motivations, and very big hearts.   I have no doubt in our capacity for change.

And with that, your very proud and privileged Superintendent, is thrilled to open the 2012-2013 school year!

Lynn

You're Never Too Old for the Prom!

On May 8th, I went to the Senior Prom. No fancy dress… or flowers… or boyfriend on my arm. But, this Senior Prom was memorable none-the-less.

That day, the Peck Place Student Council, with their teachers and parents hosted a Senior Prom for about 80 senior citizens from the local area. Rumor has it the kids invited everyone they could think of, and I was thrilled for them that so many people took them up on their invitation.  I had an interesting conversation with one senior who had brought his signed dance card, complete with its satin tassel; his wife’s name was written in it next to the dances she had promised him. (You have to go back a ways to remember this dance card tradition!)

The prom authenticated so many of the virtues of a ‘real’ prom – there were decorations, music, and so much good food. Several of the students worked as DJ’s, playing a variety of tunes from today and ‘back in the day’. Other students arranged a bench where you could pose with a ‘date’ and have your prom pictures taken. But, the greatest fun took place on the dance where the Peck Place students and the seniors danced in conga lines, did the Macarena and the Hustle, twisted, and just had a wonderful time together. It was a mystery as to who was teaching whom these dances.

Events such as these are so important in a school community for a variety of reasons. Certainly, a elementary school and senior citizen prom helps to close that ever-talked-about ‘generation gap’ which has widened over the past two decades as extended families have been affected by job relocations. But more importantly, an event such as this requires that students come out of their comfort zones and enjoy themselves by giving of their time, attention, and talents to others. You couldn’t have been in the gymnasium with them without recognizing they ended their day with a positive sense of self, the spirit of altruism, and a sense of responsibility for the happiness of someone else.

I’ll let pictures tell the rest of the story…

"I Gotta Crow..."

I had the best time Saturday night at Turkey Hill School’s production of Peter Pan -- all thanks to the tireless efforts of Deborah Sansone and at least 40 mothers and fathers who rehearsed lines with the kids, sewed costumes, built props, took photos, sold snacks, and on and on.
The kids were amazing – there’s no doubt about it! But nothing could top how amazing it was to see over 100 of them enjoy the chance to act, sing, and dance in a play for their friends and families. Nothing in my past experience prepared me for either the energy or the sheer joy of this undertaking.

I’ve been to school plays before and loved them. Generally, 10 – 15 kids auditioned and got speaking or chorus parts and another 10 or so kids worked in the stage crew. There were costumes and scenery and programs. These
performances were always a lot of fun.

But TH’s Peter Pan was HUGE – a true spectacular! – and no child who wanted to try it was turned away! I think I counted a dozen different Peter Pans, including one with itchy poison ivy who performed like the trouper he was. There were nine Wendys, three Michaels, three Tinkerbells, and four or five Smees. There were Twinkle Stars and Sparkle Stars and Winkie Stars. There were two dozen dancing mermaids! Some of the actors were laugh-out-loud funny. Some of them were so little and so cute, they brought tears to my eyes. The ‘lost’ boys and girls of Neverland made me just want to take them home, like the Wendys did, and read fairy tales to them!

Mrs. Sansone, the Drama Club Producer, wrote in her stage notes that people often ask her and her crew of parent directors why in the world they would do this. Are they crazy? Why would anyone take all that time to rewrite a new script that exited one Peter, so another could slip in? Why would they sew three or four Hook costumes when they could have gotten away with one? Why hold Drama Club rehearsals with 101 actors when the exits and entrances would be so much more manageable if you divided that number by four and told the rest of the kids, ‘maybe next year.’ Mrs. Sansone told the audience that last year only five 6th graders came out for the play; this year there were three times that number.

As this school district’s new superintendent, I am once again amazed by a commitment to kids in evidence everywhere I turn. Thank you to these wonderful parents who wanted 101 actors this year, and next year are hoping for more. Their gift, like the gift of so many of Orange’s parents i have met, is immeasurable! And if I might take liberties with Peter Pan’s lyrics a bit, I’ll admit this to you:  “I'm just the luckiest ‘fellow’ / 'Twas ever my fortune to know! / How can I hide it / When deep down inside it / just tickles me so / That I've gotta let go / and crow!”

What is D.A.R.E?

Kayla, a student in Miss Hart’s 6th grade classroom, took the microphone at Turkey Hill School to read her essay aloud to the small crowd gathered in the all-purpose room.  

“What is D.A.R.E?” she began, and then followed-up by answering her own question. “DARE stands for Drug Abuse Resistance Education… where 6th graders learn to make good choices and not do anything we are not supposed to do. For example, Officer [John] Aquino teaches us … not to smoke tobacco or smoke marijuana. We also learn about alcohol and not to have it since we are only 11-12 years old and you have to be 21 to drink alcohol.”

Kayla, representative of all of our DARE graduates, was poised and determined. Across three days, February 14 – 16th, our 6th graders participated in their DARE graduation and one-by-one shook the hands of Officer Aquino, their school principal, and many other town dignitaries.

During the ceremony, they also listened to their friends read essays which had won the DARE essay contest and viewed a slideshow of their classmates in the DARE program – all of which I am going to try to capture here with somewhat the same degree of excitement and enthusiasm as permeated the auditoriums on those days.

There was great music, a delicious array of desserts, parent involvement, community support, evidence of student achievement, faces filled with pride, a sense of celebration – all of the things that earmark a successful program.

From her own personal perspective, Emmy read, “Another skill I have learned in DARE is to say no to negative peer pressure. Positive peer pressure is good, but negative may seem cool now, except in twenty years it will sneak up on you! Just like someone I know who had a friend who was pressured to go out on mischief night and ended up getting arrested. Now it is on his permanent record and he may not get into the college of his dreams.”

The students shared a lot of facts: alcohol can kill brain cells; it slows down your body and can even cause a coma alcohol causes increased risk of injury in everything you do alcohol makes some people more violent and causes car accidents smoking causes cancer and respiratory problems nicotine is added to cigarettes to make smoking addictive more than 400,000 American die from tobacco-related causes each year most adults who smoke started when they were a kid marijuana distorts your vision and your coordination and lowers your blood pressure there is more tar in marijuana smoke than in tobacco smoke.

During their classes, the students learned a decision-making model and practiced it through role-playing and simulations.

They donned vision impairment goggles (which simulate being under the influence) and attempted simple routine tasks such as tying their shoes. They talked about the prevalence of alcohol in popular culture.

As Kayla wrote, “[Alcohol] advertisements are literally EVERYWHERE! On kids’ toys, painted on buildings… even on babies’ bibs. This is out of control!”

Her words reminded me of a popular song by Katy Perry (Last Friday Night) that my grandchildren like because it has a great beat and is ‘sing-able’; in fact, my 10-year-old grandson knows every word: “Last Friday night / Yeah we danced on tabletops / And we took too many shots / Think we kissed but I forgot / Last Friday night / Yeah we maxed our credit cards / And got kicked out of the bar / So we hit the boulevard / Last Friday night / Yeah I think we broke the law / Always say we're gonna stop-op / Whoa-oh-oah / This Friday night / Do it all again / This Friday night / Do it all again.” The idea that 'having fun' means ‘under-the influence’ is everywhere – reality TV, serial TV, sports program advertising, and so on.

I’m grateful Officer Aquino points that out to our children; I’m grateful he provides counter-messages that hopefully our students will recall well into their teens. About four years ago, I worked on a project with another district’s ‘Communityof Concern: Substance Abuse Council’.

Through a very extensive student survey, it became apparent that there were patterns in the habits of the parents and guardians who were raising the survey’s ‘safest’ teens (i.e. those students less likely to smoke, drink, ride in cars with people who were under the influence, binge or purge, try drugs, misuse prescription drugs, etc.).

Those patterns of prevention are worth remembering as our 6th graders move up into the middle school: Eat one meal per day with your children. Know where your children are, and with whom, when they are not at home. Set clear rules about the use of alcohol and drugs.

Become more aware of your children’s stress levels and more informed about stress reduction. Help your student become involved in civic organizations and volunteering in the community. Limit the amount of unorganized time your children spend ‘hanging out with friends.’

Officer Aquino, and the Orange Police Department, care very much about our children, and the D.A.R.E program is just one example of their commitment to our kids' well-being and safety.

BOE Presented Building Needs to BOF and Appealed for Financial Support on January 23rd

The Orange Board of Education presented four significant facilities issues to the Board of Finance at their January 23rd meeting. Our Facilities Director, Mike Luzzi, led the detailed presentation. The issues we face are: new roofs at both Race Brook School and Peck Place; a new boiler at Turkey Hill School; and a driveway repair, and possible redesign, at Peck Place School. In each case, a failure at the facility could cause the district hardship, and we were asking the BOF for their help in redressing these problems before those potential hardships occur.  Click through the slides below to view the full presentation.

Building & Grounds Presentation fo BOF

View more presentations from Lynn McMullin

Questions We Have for Ms. McMullin

My goal was to visit each of the schools and each of the classrooms, greeting the staff members and students, in my first few days in Orange.  I believe I have accomplished that, and I had the most wonderful introduction to Orange imaginable as a result.  One classroom wrote and sang me a song.  In another classroom, the students stood up on cue with signs that spelled out their 'welcome' message.  I was invited to make an African necklace in an art class.  I accepted the third graders' challenge to write a story over the weekend.  Each of the schools made my first visit feel special.

In Ms. Lily Fielding's Grade 3 classroom at Turkey Hill, the students had prepared a set of interview questions that will serve as a perfect means of introducing myself to the community.

Shannon and Shayne asked: What inspired you become a superintendent?
Well, Shannon and Shayne, my love for education began a very long time ago, when I was 6 or 7 and I played school with my sister and a 'classroom' of stuffed animals and dolls.  My parents bought us tablets, pencils, paper, rulers, protractors, and I would pretend to be the teacher for hours.  All through elementary school and high school I loved reading books, writing math problems on the chalkboard, composing 'themes' on yellow-lined paper -- all things which must seem old-fashioned to you in 2012.  Later, as a real language arts teacher with my own classroom, I taught over 1,600 students, corrected at least 20,000 essays, and attended 24 high school graduations. (not counting my own). 

All of these experiences inspired me to become a superintendent.  I kept following the path in front of me and opening the doors of opportunity as they appeared before me.  I have continued to go to school as recently as three years ago, and I have never stopped reading and learning about education.  Finally, one day last year, I realized, "I'm ready to be the superintendent!  And, I really want to do this!"

Nishaan wanted to know: How will you take care of all 4 schools as superintendent?
This week, Nishann, I came to your school and visited your classroom.  I want to continue to do that often in all four schools.  Staying in touch with the schools is how I will focus on what you and your teachers need to be successful every day.  It's my job to make sure that all of the people in charge -- from the teachers and staff in your schools, to your parents and the members of our community, including, of course, the Board of Education -- always think about one important question: What's best for kids?

Olivia asked: Do you have a family?  Do you have a pet?
I do have a family.. and a pet, Olivia.  I have two children who are all grown up.  My son is 36 and works as a digital photographer and graphic artist in Greenville, SC.  My daughter is 34 and she stays at home taking care of my youngest grand-daughter, Ella, who just turned two years old.   I also have a 15-year-old grand-daughter, who is a sophomore in high school and plays volleyball for her school.  She loves school, especially Spanish and history, and enjoys reading, too.  In the middle, I have a 10-year-old grandson, who loves soccer and plays outdoors or indoors all year long.  And, he likes X-box!

My pet is a little white dog named Millie.  She'll be two in February, and she weighs less than 10 pounds.  I'm sharing a picture of her so you can see how cute she is, almost lost in the very tall grass.

Dana asked the question that made my day: How long have you been a superintendent?
Dana, how many days have you been back to school after your holiday break?  That's how many days I've been a superintendent.  And so far, I've loved every one of them.

To answer Xavier's question, what's my favorite thing about being a superintendent?
So far, meeting and working with people -- kids, teachers, volunteers, parents, community members.  At the end of the day, I like to feel like I've made a difference.

Maeve, my first name is Lynn.

Adarsh, my favorite 'animal' is actually a bird -- I especially love hummingbirds, but I can watch all the birds at my bird feeder for a long time without getting bored.

Kelly, my house is beige, with white trim and black shutters.  It has a red porch.

Ryan, my favorite hobby is writing.  I love writing short stories, and I have even tried to write three different novels, though I don't think they are very good, yet.  I need to spend more time on my drafts in the future, but right now I'm happier reading and writing about education. 

Max, my car is a Prius and I love it because I get about 50 miles to a gallon of gas.

Payton, you asked how old I was, but added OPTIONAL in all capital letters! -- I'm almost 50 years older than my grandson.